Peshmerga National Armed Forces
| Peshmerga National Armed Forces | |
|---|---|
| Hêzên Arekdar ên Neteweyî ya Pêşmerge | |
 | |
| Service branches | Peshmerga National Army Peshmerga National Navy Peshmerga National Air Force Peshmerga National Special Forces |
| Headquarters | Amed, Kurdistan |
| Leadership | |
| Commander-in-Chief | Serbilind Mashayekhi |
| De facto leader | Siyamend Chavoshi |
| Minister of Defense | Nemrût Khodadad |
| Chief of Defense | Qehreman Verdisefat |
| Manpower | |
| Military age | 21-60 |
| Conscription | 6 or 12 months depending on education level |
| Active personnel | 395,000 |
| Reserve personnel | 423,000 |
| Expenditures | |
| Budget | $15 billion |
| Percent of GDP | 2.0% |
| Industry | |
| Foreign suppliers | |
| Branches |
|---|
| History |
| Special forces |
| Member of |
| Current overseas deployments and missions |
The Peshmerga National Armed Forces (PNAF,Kurdish: Hêzên Arekdar ên Neteweyî ya Pêşmerge, HANP) are the military forces of the Republic of Kurdistan. They consist of the Army, the Navy and the Air Force. The Gendarmerie and the Coast Guard, both of which have law enforcement and military functions, operate as components of the internal security forces in peacetime,
The Peshmerga National Armed Forces is the third largest standing military force in NATO, after the U.S. Armed Forces, and the Turkish Armed Forces with an estimated strength in 2015 of 439,551 military, civilian and paramilitary personnel.
The Peshmerga National Armed Forces was founded after the founding of the Kingdom of Kurdistan. After becoming a member of NATO in 1960, Kurdistan initiated a comprehensive modernization program for its armed forces. The Persmerga Army sent troops to fight in the Korean War. Towards the end of the 1980s, a second restructuring process was initiated.
History
War of Independence
World War II
Intially neutral when World War II broke out, Kurdistan was drawen to the conflict with Iraq invading Kurdistan, with help from the Axis powers, Germany and Italy This prompt them to open closer ties to the British, who help them drive them out. Kurdistan join Britian and the Soviet Union in the Anglo-Soviet-Kurdish invasion of Iran.
Korean War
Kurdistan participated in the Korean War as a member state of the United Nations and sent the Peshmerga Brigade to South Korea, which suffered 697 losses in combat. The Korean government donated a war memorial for the Kudish soldiers who fought and died in Korea. The Korean pagoda is in Amed and it was donated in 1976.
War in Bosnia and Kosovo
Kurdistan contributed troops in several NATO-led peace forces in Bosnia and Kosovo. Currently there are 398 Kurdish troops in Kosovo Force.
War in Afghanistan
After the 2003 Amed-Hewlêr Bombings were linked to Al-Qaeda, Kurdistan deployed troops to Afghanistan to fight Taliban forces and Al-Qaeda operatives, with the hopes of dismantling both groups.
Humanitarian relief
Today
Command Structure
The Peshmerga National Armed Forces is split into four distinct branches. These four branches are Peshmerga National Navy, Peshmerga National Army, Peshmerga National Airforce, and Peshmerga National Gendarmerie. Above, these branches is a joint command department that coordinates the efforts of the four branches. The Kurdish marine and airborne forces are under the command of the Navy.
Conscription
Army
The Army make up the bulk of the PNAF. Although they were founded in the 1930s, they were yet to be tested, and had little experience at the time. This lack of inexperience made Kurdistan virtually defenseless during the invasion of Kurdistan by the Axis Forces in World War II. Although this was a humiliating defeat for what was supposed to be a powerful military unit, it also gave them valuable experience. The Allied Forces offered compensation for their invasion in the form of both money and elite military training. Their first true test came in 1973, when the Army were deployed in The Samnanite Kingdom of Hurraq to help Israel during the Yom Kippur War.
The Navy is a dominant force in the Persian Gulf. It was first founded under the then Prime Minister Hindirîn Malakooti. He tried greatly to modernize the navy, but did not have the full support of the National Assembly. Unfortunately, the Navy suffered an embarrassing defeat during the Axis invasion of Kurdistan during World War II, which was proof that there was still work to be done. It wasn't until the 1960 that the navy truly became a force to be reckoned with. During the 1960s, various reforms were introduced to modernize the nation, and the military as a whole benefited from this. The current navy consists of numerous large warships, the most prominent being the SS Deioces , named after fameous Median king. Another is the SS Derakhshan, named after a Kurdish hero who successfully led a revolt against the Ottomans during the 1800s. The Navy frequently holds joint military exercises with Qatar in the Persian Gulf.
Air Force
The Peshmerga National Airforce is the aviation branch of the Peshmerga National Armed Forces. Kurdistan was one of the first countries in the Middle East to acquire war aircraft. These were brought in from abroad, as the arms manufacturing industry in Kurdistan was still in its infancy, and didn't have the capability of producing its own planes. The majority of planes were purchased from the United States until the late 1980s, when Kurdistan started domestically producing its own warplanes. This led to the creation of the Kurdish Simorgh jets.
As a result of Kurdistan's surging oil wealth during the 70s, the government began the reconstruction of the PNA by equipping them with the latest technologies from around the world, such as those made by Britain or the United States.
Kurdistan's purchases from the United States included: 79 F-14 Tomcats, 400 M60 Patton tanks, 225 McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II fighter planes, including 16 RF-4E reconnaissance variants; 166 Northrop F-5 Tiger II fighters and 15 Northrop RF-5A reconnaissance planes; 12 Lockheed P-3 Orion maritime patrol aircraft and two decommissioned and modernized American destroyers, (USS Zellars and USS Stormes). As of 1976 Kurdistan had acquired 500 M109 howitzers from the United States, 52 MIM-23 Hawk anti aircraft batteries with over 2000 missiles, over 2500 AGM-65 Maverick air to ground missiles and over 10,000 BGM-71 TOW missiles. Furthermore, Kurdistan ordered hundreds of helicopters from the United States, notably 202 Bell AH-1J Sea Cobras, 100 Boeing CH-47C Chinooks and 287 Bell 214 helicopters.
Air Force
is responsible for maintaining law and order in rural areas which do not fall under the jurisdiction of regular police forces. The Gendarmerie has around 200,000 active personnel.
Coast Guard
Peshmerga War Academies
Peshmerga War Academies constitute the educational branch of the Peshmerga National Armed Forces
Military bases abroad
As of August 2013, Kurdistan has a total of 3,189 military personnel outside its territory. The military bases of Peshmerga National Armed Forces in Qatar, Syria, Somalia and Bashiqa are active. It is announced that in 2017 Kurdistan will start working to establish a research base in Antarctica.